President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly getting irritated over social media chatter that the real president is transphobic billionaire Elon Musk and Trump is merely Musks puppet. In fact, a Trump spokesperson recently clarified in a statement that Trump is the true leader of the Republican Party the statement brought a knowing smirk to the face of former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki.Musk who Trump nominated the unofficial budget-slashing Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) demonstrated his political might last week by wrecking a bipartisan continuing resolution (CR) to continue funding the federal government by publishing 150 tweets against it many of which contained misinformation and causing House Republicans to scramble for a new plan to avoid a government shutdown. Related Dont believe those stories about how Donald Trump has lost his grip on power His defeat in the House and Elon Musks power moves are hiccups. Trump is the chaos agent who still calls the shots. Though congressional Republicans eventually secured funding that pleased Musk partly by removing $190 million in child cancer research funds congressional Democrats social media commenters began saying that Musk is really in control of the Republican-led Congress and the presidency, and Trump is just a servile figurehead. Social media commenters also posted AI-generated images showing Musk controlling as a Trump marionette puppet. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Its clear whos in charge, and its not President-elect Donald Trump.Shadow President Elon Musk spent all day railing against Republicans CR, succeeded in killing the bill, and then Trump decided to follow his lead. pic.twitter.com/feDiAXe8yp Rep. Pramila Jayapal (@RepJayapal) December 18, 2024Well today the House Republicans will decide who their master is you cant serve two! Is it the South African Oligarch or the people that elected us? Time is ticking! Trump has made his decision pic.twitter.com/j8btknbB38 Jasmine Crockett (@JasmineForUS) December 20, 2024 Displeased with the criticism, Trumps incoming press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, told the media, As soon as President Trump released his official stance on the CR [continuing resolution], Republicans on Capitol Hill echoed his point of view. President Trump is the leader of the Republican Party. Full stop.Trump also echoed Leavitts statement at the Turning Point USA conference in Phoenix, Arizona, on Sunday, stating, No, hes not taking the presidency. All the different hoaxes. The new one is that President Trump has ceded the presidency to Elon Musk. No, no, thats not happening.No, hes not going to be president, that I can tell you, Trump continued. And Im safe. You know why he cant be? He wasnt born in this country. Trump was referring to the constitutional requirement that all U.S. presidents be natural born U.S. citizens. This technicality, of course, doesnt stop presidents from being controlled by wealthy foreigners or foreign-born businessmen. (Musk was born in South Africa and stayed in the U.S. illegally after his legal immigration visa ended.)In a recent installment of her MSNBC program, Psaki said, Musk felt the need to go back on X and say it was, quote, the media who was trying to drive a wedge between him and Trumpalso declaring it wouldnt work.A Trump spokesperson even felt the need to clarify that the actual president-elect is, in fact, the leader of the Republican Party. I promise you thats not exactly a statement you want to have to make, she noted, offering a wry smile after her comment. Psaki isnt the only one doubting Trumps sense of security.Bloomberg News recently wrote, That Trump would be compelled to address Musks power is testimony to the unusual influence that the worlds richest man has displayed in a second Trump presidency that will not begin for another month.However, Donald Trump Jr. told the Turning Point conference, You see what the media is trying to do to break up the relationship that my father has with Elon. Theyre trying to cause that schism to prevent these guys doing what theyre going to do best, and we cannot allow that.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.